Better Homes And Gardens Black Rock

This Long-Blooming Rock Garden Plan Will Decorate Your Landscape With Colorful Blossoms

Use this flower-filled design among boulders or smaller stones for added appeal.

To create this stunning garden plan, you'll need a variety of perennials that provides a pleasing mix of colors and textures to contrast with the large boulders among them. Blooming beauties like daylily, Shasta daisy, lavender, and astilbe will turn a drab, rocky landscape into a tapestry of bright colors that will last you through the season. Either plant around a naturally rocky area in your yard, or bring in a few well placed stones to create the perfect backdrop for this long-blooming rock garden plan. The hardworking perennials in this design just need a spot in full sun and well-drained soil to look their best.

long blooming rock garden illustration

Credit: Illustration by Mavis Augustine Torke

Plants for Creating the Long-Blooming Rock Garden Plan

5 Astilbe 'Weisse Gloria': Zones 4-8
10 Astilbe 'Feuer': Zones 5-8
6 Garden phlox (Phlox paniculata 'David'): Zones 4-8
3 Milky bellflower (Campanula lactiflora 'Loddon Anna'): Zones 4-8
3 Beardtongue (Penstemon grandiflorus): Zones 3-9
6 Campanula 'Birch Hybrid': Zones 4-7
3 Meadow phlox (Phlox maculata 'Rosalinde'): Zones 5-8
9 Daylily (Hemerocallis spp.): Zones 4-9
6 Shasta daisy (Leucanthemum x superbum): Zones 5-8
3 Red valerian (Centranthus ruber): Zones 5-8
12 Thread-leaved tickseed (Coreopsis 'Moonbeam'): Zones 4-9
3 Speedwell (Veronica spicata 'Red Fox'): Zones 3-8
3 Lamb's ears (Stachys byzantina): Zones 4-8
3 Monkshood (Aconitum 'Bressingham Spire'): Zones 3-7
3 Penstemon digitalis 'Husker Red': Zones 2-8
3 Lady's mantle (Alchemilla mollis): Zones 4-7
12 Lily (Lilium spp.): Zones 4-9
3 Bee balm (Monarda didyma): Zones 4-9
1 Wormwood (Artemisia arborescens): Zones 5-9
3 Obedient plant (Physostegia virginiana): Zones 4-8
3 Cranesbill (Geranium spp.): Zones 4-9
3 Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia): Zones 5-8

If you aren't able to find the exact cultivars listed above, substitute with others that have similar colors, shapes, and sizes. And because some plants can become overly aggressive and spread out of control in certain climates, always check which species are considered invasive in your area before planting.

Get the Free Long-Blooming Rock Garden Plan

The garden plan for this design includes an illustrated version of the planted garden, a detailed layout diagram, a list of plants for the garden as shown, and complete instructions for installing the garden. Free, one-time registration allows unlimited access to all garden plans, available as printable PDFs.

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